Trapped Under Ice
by Hinoda Ketsuki
Summary: Basically a re-write of Kane's WWF history, and of his romance (sort of) with Midean's little sister Miranda. Please R&R!
1. Love at First Sight

SD: I don't own the WWF. That's Vinnie Mac. I don't own Kane. No one does. *Sigh* I can still dream, though...   
  
  
Trapped Under Ice  
  
"What is this? I've stricken by fate. Wrapped up tight, cannot move, can't break free. Hand of doom has a tight grip on me. Freezing. Can't move at all. Screaming. Can't hear my call. I am dying to live. Cry out. I'm trapped under the ice."~Metallica "Trapped Under Ice"  
  
  
Chapter 1  
August 29, 1997  
The Knight Home  
  
Miranda Knight, Midean's younger sister, sighed impatiently. Paul Bearer had insisted that she meet his son. He also wanted her to meet the Undertaker's little brother. She only hoped to God that he wasn't trying to set her up with his son. Miranda could only imagine what the son of the Heinous Human Being would look like: fat and dough-like, with his father's sweaty and lugubrious demeanor. She shuddered at the thought. Probably had never been on a date with a girl in his life.  
But if Paul didn't get his fat ass here soon she was gonna go do something else. She had better things to do than sit around and wait for the rotund Bearer. In fact, she'd rather listen to her big brother have a conversation with Mr. Blinky. Just as she was about to go in, Paul walked in. (Without knocking, I might add)  
"Oh, good. You're still waiting. I'm so sorry we're late, but Kane is a little shy. He was nervous about meeting you." He turned to the open door. "It's okay, Kane. You can come out. Mira isn't going to hurt you." Miranda raised a warning hand.  
"It's Miranda to you, Paul. Don't forget that." She returned her attention to the door, just in time to see a huge man wearing a black ski mask walk in. Just from looking at him, she could tell that he was of the Undertaker's blood. He had the height and well-muscled build of the Deadman, but how this man could be shy was beyond her. Her mouth went appallingly dry and she felt as if the room temperature had suddenly shot up. Paul waved the tall man over to him.  
"Mira...nda, this is Kane, the Undertaker's younger brother." Kane inclined his head gravely toward Miranda. He wasn't used to being around women and they always made him feel a little dizzy. Spending most of your life locked in a basement tends to do that to you. Miranda managed a smile and extended her hand to Kane.  
"I...I'm Miranda Knight. It's nice to meet you." After a moment, Kane took Miranda's outstretched hand. This mad them both a little dizzy.  
"It's...nice...to meet...you, too," Kane said, slowly and painfully. Miranda couldn't help but notice how raspy his voice was. And the ski mask was a bit disconcerting. She motioned for the two of them to sit down.  
"Aren't you hot with that thing on?" she asked Kane, indicating his mask. Kane looked over at Paul. "And I thought you were bringing your son, too, Paul." Paul smiled his twisted little smile.  
"Kane *is* my son, Miranda." Miranda could have sworn that her jaw touched the ground on that one. There was no way in Hell that this man was Paul Bearer's son. NO WAY.  
"I...he...Taker's brother?" she managed weakly. Paul's smile grew wider. This was getting more fun by the minute. Kane was confused. 'Didn't Father tell her?' he thought.  
"Yes, he is the Undertaker's brother...Well, half-brother. But I'm Kane's father. And as for the mask, that's part of the reason that we're here. You see, when Kane was four and Taker was nine, Taker burnt their house down, killed their mother and his father and left Kane for dead as well. Luckily, I came home in time to save Kane. He was, however, very badly burned and now he is so hideously disfigured that he has to wear a mask to cover the scars." Kane hung his head and Miranda was shocked to see that Paul would say such things about his own son, especially right in front of him.  
Since Kane's long brown hair hung in his face, neither his father nor this pretty woman wrestler could see where he was looking. And at this moment, his eyes were fastened on Miranda, waiting for her reaction. She had closed her eyes briefly at Paul's mention of the Undertaker leaving Kane for dead, but she hadn't reacted at all to his father's description of him as "hideously disfigured". Now Miranda looked over at him. He raised his head, preparing for the inevitable "Oh, I'm so sorry". But he never heard it.  
"Kane...I have no idea what this must be like for you...I wish I could understand, but I can't..." Kane was surprised. 'She doesn't feel sorry for me? That's...nice." Kane hated being pitied. Miranda cast a quick smile at him and then turned dutifully back to Paul, who had begun rambling on about revenge.   
'Revenge for Kane my ass. More like revenge for kicking you to the curb, Pauly boy.' she thought in mild amusement. Once Paul had talked himself dry (which takes some time), he stood and yanked Kane up, as well. "Well, Miranda, thank you for talking with us. We'll come by tomorrow." Kane smiled at Miranda, but his mask hid this act.  
"Okay, Paul. It was nice meeting you, Kane. If you want to, you could work out in our home gym tomorrow." Kane looked at his father (read: slavemaster) and Paul slowly nodded his approval. "Good. I'll see you tomorrow, then." She then saw the two men out to Paul's hearse.  
As Kane got in the back seat, he looked over at Miranda. "Goodbye...Miranda...Knight." Miranda smiled at him, and for some reason, Kane's knees got weak.  
"Goodbye, Kane Bearer." Once Paul had driven off, Miranda slumped against the brick wall of her house. Damn, but that man looked GOOD. Walking back inside, she wondered what lay underneath Kane's mask.  



	2. I'm a Monster

Chapter 2: I'm a Monster October 23, 1997  
  
Kane had made a huge impact on the WWF in only a couple of weeks. Since his appearance during the Hell in a Cell match between his half-brother and HBK, he had begun a rampage. And it felt good. He had a taste for violence. And he'd gotten to know Miranda better. She was very sweet to him and she didn't seem to fear him. Perhaps this was because she could see what he was on the inside. Miranda, despite all of Kane's strength and rage, could see that he was lonely and angry and in need of love and support. And Miranda was more than willing to help. Kane only wished that he could understand why being around Miranda made him feel so dizzy and vulnerable. Every time she was near him his heart began pounding and he felt weak. He wasn't about to ask his father, though. Paul had once warned him about women. ~"No woman will ever love you, Kane. No woman *could* ever love a horrible scarred thing like you. Women will only use you and hurt you, Kane. Remember that."~ Paul had said. Kane sniffed slightly. His father was right, of course. There was no way any woman would love him. And especially not one as beautiful and kind as Miranda. She'd never see anything in him. But he wished...oh, how he wished. And his daydreams were filled with visions of himself, unscarred and normal, telling Miranda how he felt. She would gasp with delight and run into his arms and he would... He was rudely jolted back into reality as he heard the locker room door open. That would be Father. Kane finished tying up his boots, giving no thought to his mask, which was lying on the bench in front of him. "Kane, in our match tonight against..." But Kane never heard the rest. He had looked up in horror to see Miranda standing beside her locker, pulling out a black t-shirt, looking straight at him. It took Miranda a moment to register what she was seeing. Then, as realization dawned on her, she slowly swallowed. Kane frantically searched for his mask, not remembering that it was right in front of him. Miranda walked over to him and picked the mask up off the bench. "Is this what you were looking for, Kane?" she asked. He nodded and snatched the red and black leather mask from her and turned away, quickly pulling it on and tying it. When this was complete, he looked up at Miranda. "I'm sorry...you...had to...see...that. I'm...a...monster." he told her, unable to meet her emerald eyes. Miranda cautiously reached out and took Kane's chin in her hand. She raised his head until his blue eyes met her own. And she shook her head. "Kane, you are not a monster. You are a very handsome man who any woman would be very lucky to have." Kane could tell that she meant what she was saying, but he didn't understand just what she meant by it. Miranda blinked, unable to believe the words that had just come out of her mouth. Had she *really* just told Kane that she thought he was handsome? She did think that. The scarring was not nearly as bad as she had imagined from Bearer's description. Only the right side of Kane's face was scarred, and that scarring was not enough to noticeably detract from his attractiveness. His right eye, being damaged in the fire, was a lighter blue than the left. So if Kane wanted to get a better look at something, he'd tilt his head, which he did now. But although she thought Kane handsome, she hadn't meant to blurt it out like that. 'There is no way Kane could ever feel about me the way I feel about him. He's tall and strong and brave and here I am, skinny and pale and not nearly good enough for him. But I can treat him better than that sorry excuse for a father of his does.' She leaned toward Kane and hugged him gently, causing the Big Red Machine to suffer a minor heart attack. 'She's hugging me...The last person who hugged me was my mom. I was a little kid and she hugged me and played with me and told me she loved me. Father has never hugged me. Not that I blame him. Who would want to touch a repulsive creature like me?' But as he thought this, he realized that Miranda didn't seem to mind. When she let him go, Miranda gave him a smile. "I'd better go get ready for the match. I'll be back in a couple of minutes," she said, picking up her t-shirt, which in her surprise she had dropped. Kane watched her as she left, willing the tears in his eyes to go away. Despite Miranda's kind words, he still thought himself a monster. And monsters didn't cry 


	3. Enter XPac

Chapter 3:  
  
Enter X-Pac  
  
Miranda rolled her eyes as X-Pac told yet another disgusting joke, this one involving a Rabbi, a blind homosexual, and a prostitute. She would never understand why Kane liked this guy.   
  
She looked over at Kane. Kane was laughing gamely, although Miranda was pretty sure that he didn't get the joke.  
  
X-Pac laughed a bit longer at his own wit before turning and looking at Miranda. "What? You didn't like the joke?" he asked, pushing a strand of his greasy hair from his face. Miranda didn't answer, but only glared at him. "Man, your friend here is a cold one..." X-Pac said to Kane. Kane looked at Miranda to see if she was upset.  
  
"She...is a...good friend..." Kane said finally, in Miranda's defense. X-Pac grinned.  
  
"I just bet she is...she looks real...*friendly*..." he said with a wink and an obscene gesture. Miranda stifled an acid retort. X-Pac was Kane's friend, after all. And although she personally loathed the "grease rat", as she had dubbed X-Pac, she had to respect him as Kane's friend. So she stood.  
  
"I'm gonna go get a beer...you want anything, Kane?" she said. Kane thought for a minute before shaking his head. "Okay...I'll be back in a few minutes," Miranda said, walking toward the door.  
  
"Hey, while you're out, I'd like a...well, fuck you too, bitch!" X-Pac said as Miranda flicked him off as she left. "Damn, big man...that girl has some issues...if you ain't fuckin' her, then kick her ass to the curb. She's *beyond* bitchy."  
  
Kane looked up at X-Pac, tilting his head. Miranda was his friend, and had been for almost two years. And Miranda was always nice to him, which made it all the harder for him to understand the way she had been acting lately. She was so different: cold, bitter...it wasn't the Miranda that Kane knew at all.  
  
"So, how 'bout it, Kane? I can pick us up some honeys...what's wrong, big man?" X-Pac said. Kane was staring at him. "What'd I say?"  
  
"Miranda...is my...friend. I...won't...send her...away..." Kane managed to get out. The effort of speaking made his throat hurt and he wished he'd asked Miranda to bring him back a soda.  
  
X-Pac shook his head. "Some friend..." he muttered. But he said nothing else.  
  
***  
  
Miranda was sitting in a small offshoot of the main corridor of the arena, drinking beer and palying poker with the Undertaker's Acolytes. "You are a lying whore, Mira...I'll see you and raise you fifty," Bradshaw said, throwing down his chips.   
  
"I ain't stupid, man...she has something...I'm out," Farooq said, laying his cards down. Miranda grinned and looked toward Bradshaw.  
  
"She ain't got shit...Well, let's see what you got..." he said. Miranda laid down her hand: royal flush ace high. "Goddammit!!" Bradshaw yelled, throwing down his cards. His two pair had done him no good.   
  
"Lying whore, huh?" Miranda asked as she raked her chips in. "A lying whore with all your money, big man..."  
  
Bradshaw swore some more and lit a cigar. "Why don't you go back and hang out with that monster friend of yours?" he asked after taking a few puffs. Miranda rolled her eyes and took a swig of beer.  
  
"That bastard's in there with him. I had to leave before I strangled the grease rat." Farooq nearly choked on his beer as he laughed at the name. "What?" Miranda demanded. "I hate the little punk...I don't trust him. There's just something... He's using Kane; he'll turn on him the first chance he gets."  
  
Bradshaw shrugged. "Kane's a big boy...he can handle his own shit. Don't get all worked up over it..."   
  
Miranda sighed and drained her beer. "Yeah, maybe..." she muttered, standing. "I got a match against Sable..." She walked off, ignoring her pile of chips.  
  
"Damn...she left without your money..." Farooq said in surprise. "Wonder what's got into her..." Bradshaw just shrugged again and took back his chips. "Hey! Some of those are mine!" 


End file.
